SoCal Restaurant Show October 19, 2024 Hour 1

SoCal Restaurant Show

The Great American Beer Festival held annually in Denver is the premier U.S. beer competition, crowning the finest beverages in over 100 beer and cider styles. Long Beach has an emerging craft beer scene as evidenced by their performance at the Great American this year. The 5-year old Trademark Brewing took home one Gold and one Silver. Ian McCall of ISM Brewing was awarded a Bronze (their first year) for Plough & Harrow in the Saison category. Ian McCall taps the keg on all the Long Beach craft beer happenings.

“Wine Educator and Wine Journalist Maiah Johnson Dunn tells heart-forward stories about New York wine.” She joins us to uncork her varied path to wine and her current duties at the multi-faceted New York Kitchen culinary and beverage education center in Canandaigua, NY, Finger Lakes. “After a 13-year career in experiential and event marketing, Maiah transitioned to the wine and hospitality industry. Her shift began with Chasing Grapeness, an Instagram account turned wine pairing dinner series focused on increasing industry diversity, equity, and inclusion. Following two sold-out dinners in 2020, she started writing about wine and never looked back. Maiah is the Beverage Education Manager at New York Kitchen in Canandaigua, New York, where her focus is building a warm and inviting educational space for everyone. Quarterly she co-teaches a class called DEI Over Wine, which breaks down the concepts of DEI into easily digestible conversations over a glass.”

Our own Chef Andrew Gruel, the menu-maker behind the full-service Calico Fish House (in the Sunset Beach area of Huntington Beach) provides another timely and informative “Ask the Chef” segment where he responds to listeners’ thoughtful inquiries. Chef Andrew has spoken about continuing supply chain concerns negatively impacting the restaurant industry. He is a big proponent of enhancing the domestic supply chain and the benefits therein. Chef Andrew explains.